1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains generally to the field of swim masks and more particularly to swim masks having improved comfort as a result of a buckle with a pivot point in front of the mask lens.
2. Background Art
Swim mask buckles adjustably secure mask straps to mask frames. Prior art swim mask buckles are either fixed or swivel relative to the mask frame. Swivel swim mask buckles connect to the frame so that they can swivel about a pin through a limited angle. Both fixed and swivel buckles allow quick adjustment of the strap length. The main purpose of a swivel mask buckles is to allow the strap to move at an angle such that the mask is securely positioned. Secondarily, another purpose of the swivel is to allow the strap to be positioned above the user""s ear which is more comfortable. In practice, the pivot point of prior art swivel buckles is so close to the user""s ear that the strap cannot be positioned both above the user""s ears and around the back of the user""s head. Prior art swivel buckles do not allow the user to fixedly place the buckle in any of several swivelled positions so that the mask strap would remain in a more comfortable position during use. Moreover, prior art swivel buckles can often be accidentally dislodged from the mask frame because the means for attachment is unreliable. Additionally, prior art swivel buckles, including any attachment components or hardware, typically contain four or more components per buckle which causes higher manufacturing and assembly costs.
Because fixed buckles do not swivel, the strap must flex or bend in order to position the strap above the user""s ears. In effect, the strap""s pivot point is even closer to the user""s ears than it is with prior art swivel buckles. Therefore, there are even more comfort problems for the user when using fixed buckles than when using prior art swivel buckles.
The ideal buckle would have a pivot point that is sufficiently far enough from the user""s ears that the strap can be comfortably positioned both above the user""s ears and still around the back area of the user""s head. A pivot pin cannot be placed far enough forward to accomplish this because the pin would be so far forward that it would interfere with vision and/or with the mask lens and/or with the mask skirt. In fact, the ideal pivot position is in front of the mask lens. Therefore, the prior method of swiveling cannot be used to create the ideal buckle. The ideal buckle would also allow the user to fixedly place the buckle in any of several swivelled positions so that the mask strap would remain in the most comfortable position possible during use.
A swim mask having a buckle that slides in a curved groove in the mask frame. The buckle has a virtual pivot point that is much farther forward than any prior art swivel mask buckle. In fact, because of the unique adjustment in translation, the virtual pivot point could be infinitely in front of the mask if the groove were straight. The embodiment shown has a pivot point that is slightly in front of the mask lens. The preferred embodiment is also extremely simple to manufacture and assemble. It also has a means for being easily locked into any of several positions by the user. It is also aesthetically pleasing and allows easy strap adjustment. The preferred embodiment also has a means to attach to the mask frame such that it is extremely secure and cannot be accidentally detached and it also has only three components per buckle.
It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to provide a novel swim mask having a pair of buckles that result in a more comfortable strap configuration on a user.
It is another object of the invention to provide a swim mask having a buckle/frame interface which results in a virtual buckle pivot point in front of the mask.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a swim mask in which each buckle is moveable along a preferably curved elongated slot for extraordinary adjustability of the mask strap.